The secretariat of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, the Americas, (UN/ISDR), the World Bank and the project titled “Support for Disaster Prevention in the Andean Community” (PREDECAN), sponsored by the European Union, joined efforts to carry out an event that included two different activities: An online course, held on May 2-23, 2007, and a workshop titled “Disaster Risk Financing Strategies: Initiatives in Response to the Priorities set by the Hyogo Framework for Action”, which was held in Santiago on May 31-June 1, 2007.

The workshop was intended for officials from Latin American Ministries of Finance and Planning, who work in the fields of financial risks, budget planning and investment. Participants represented institutions from Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Honduras,

Panama, the Dominican Republic, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela. There were also delegates from a number of organizations such as the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank and the University of Chile, Public Health School.

Participants addressed issues related to the economic impact of natural disasters on developing countries, the role of governments in disaster risk financing, and a number of financial strategies aimed at reducing fiscal vulnerability to the economic impacts caused by disasters. The workshop also represented a valuable opportunity to exchange information and concerns, and share country experiences, which also were used as feedback for the workshop. The World Bank offered financing, tools and other resources to help countries achieve this goal.